Paying Child Support

Most child support is paid by income withholding as ordered by the court and maintained in PACSES, which is the state's child support computer. Pennsylvania uses monthly support orders which charge the first of each month. If your employer gets a court order, the employer will take child support out of your pay and send it to PA SCDU. Support can also be taken from your unemployment compensation, workers' compensation, Social Security and retirement and pension benefits.

National and state new hire reporting:

Your employer must report information on new employees. This information is matched against child support records. The records are used to locate parents, establish child support orders and enforce existing orders.

How can I pay child support if I don't have income withholding?

PA SCDU sends payment coupons to parents ordered to pay child support who do not have income withholding. You must write on the coupon the amount of money you are paying. Make your personal check, cashier's check or money order payable to PA SCDU. A coupon should be sent with every payment to PA SCDU. However, if you do not have a payment coupon, write your PACSES Member ID number, which is found on your court order, or SSN, on your check or money order and send payments to:

PA SCDU

P.O. Box 69110

Harrisburg, PA 17106-9110

PA SCDU cannot accept checks that are considered non-negotiable by banking standards. Some examples of non-negotiable items are: checks that are stale dated, post dated or not signed; checks that are not payable to PA SCDU; or the amount in numbers does not match the amount "written out". Also, PA SCDU does not accept temporary checks or starter checks.

You can pay child support by:

Personal check, cashier's check or money order. Send your payment coupon with the check or money order so your account is credited. Write your PACSES Member ID number or SSN on the check or money order and make it payable to PA SCDU.

Bank account debit. You can choose to have your support payments taken electronically from your checking or savings account. You may also have a one-time payment or reoccurring payments withdrawn from your bank account at www.expertpay.com. Call Expert Pay customer service at 1-800-403-0879.

Credit/debit card. PA SCDU accepts VisaR, MastercardR, or DiscoverR. You can pay by telephone with your credit/debit card by calling PA SCDU toll free at 1-800-955-2305. PA SCDU is unable to automatically charge your credit/debit card. You must call PA SCDU every time you wish to make a credit/debit card payment. Credit card payments may also be made online at www.e-childspay.com. A convenience fee is charged.

MoneyGram. Payment services are available in many local retailers including CVS, Dollar General, and Wal-Mart. MoneyGram retailers accept payments made by cash. Additionally, Wal-Mart will accept debit card payments. Payments may also be made online via debit or credit card at www.MoneyGram.com/paybills. A user fee is charged when using MoneyGram for child support payments.

For information about your support payment, contact PA SCDU at 1-877-727-7238. Individuals with hearing impairment should use 1-877-676-9582. Both numbers are toll-free nationwide. You can access your payment information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To speak with customer service staff, call between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you have questions about your case that are not related to your support payment, contact the DRS that handles your case.

What must I do if I move or change my job?

The law says that parents have 7 days to report to the DRS in writing or in person if they move or change jobs. You may also report changes on the PA Child Support Program website at www.childsupport.state.pa.us.